Charges dismissed against Duff & Phelps pair in Rangers fraud case

TWO Duff & Phelps employees – the oldco Rangers administrators – have had certain charges against them dropped.

Both David Whitehouse and Paul Clark were accused of a number of allegations regarding their involvement in the sale of the Scottish football club in 2011. These have now been dropped but could be reintroduced at a later date.

Whitehouse and Clark were among seven individuals that included ex-Rangers owner Craig Whyte and Charles Green, its chief executive, who were indicted on alleged fraud charges.

The news comes less than a month after six charges against the seven were withdrawn by the Crown.

A Crown Office spokesperson said: “The Crown will give consideration to raising a fresh indictment against Paul Clark, David Whitehouse and Charles Green within the statutory time limits.”

Clark and Whitehouse from Duff & Phelps were appointed as joint administrators of Rangers on Valentine’s Day 2012 after the club collapsed when it failed to meet PAYE and VAT demands of around £9m owed to HMRC.

The taxman subsequently vetoed a rescue deal that would have seen the club exit administration, which ultimately led to the club being sold to a consortium led by former Sheffield United chairman Charles Green for £5.5m and Rangers resurfacing as a team in the Scottish Third Division.

An investigation into whether Clark and David Whitehouse were conflicted in their role was quashed in 2013 with the pair cleared of any conflicts by the Insolvency Practitioners Association.